Cigarettes and other smoking articles commonly include filter portions (known as filter segments) which may be used to remove some impurities and toxins from cigarette smoke as it is inhaled. To make this process more efficient, filters with several different segments have been developed in the tobacco industry—for example duo filter, triple filter and the like. The segments may differ in size, shape and construction. For example there are filter segments made of carbon, accetate, paper, tobacco and other products and items. Further, they may have any of a variety of shapes, for example conical, cylindrical, etc. Recently filters with different ingredients inside have been developed, such as breakable capsules, mini capsule and massive pieces from different chemical elements. These may be used for a variety of purposes, such as imparting flavor or reducing some chemical elements from the cigarette smoke as it is inhaled by the smoker.
As mentioned above, one method of imparting flavor to a cigarette may be to include a flavor capsule within the filter portion of a cigarette. When the capsule is ruptured, it releases flavorings or aromatic material into the air stream passing through the filter. These capsules may also alter other characteristics of the inhaled smoke, such as, for example, cooling or moistening the smoke such that the smoker is provided with an enhanced smoking experience.
Additionally, specialized cigarette filters are known to incorporate a variety of elements, for example filter segments including acetate, carbon and paper elements, as well as empty or “recess” areas. Different numbers of elements are combined in varying forms in different types of filters. Further, filter elements can include both fragment elements and solid elements. Fragment elements may be distributed throughout a filter whereas solid elements may be larger than fragment elements and may be located at disposed at predetermined locations in a filter. The location of both fragment elements and solid elements may be related to the overall quality of the filter. Current methods and systems for the construction or manufacture of filters are slow and can not meet the demands of filter construction, for example with respect to the design and variety of filters.